I know that a few people were confused about how Tanjirou came back. So I hope that this chapter will make things a bit simpler to understand. Just keep in mind that it was DREAM who killed him.

With that said, let's hop into it.

xxXXxxXXxx

Pain. There was nothing more rigid, nothing more fierce, than pain. His body ached. His chest hurt, a lot. He felt the cold steel rip through his chest—through his bones and into his heart. The last thing he saw was that damn smile. That cursed smile on that cursed mask. The sickening green colour covered that monster's body, and that pale, pale skin from what he saw of his chin, the corners of his lips stretching, showing just how little he cared about the life he snuffed out.

That monster was the last thing he saw.

At the very least, he would be reunited with his family.

Well, that was what he thought. When his eyes opened, he wasn't met with his family waiting for him in the light of the sky above, instead, he was met with a room. The boy shifted, shuttered, and collected himself, taking in the new surroundings. The room in question was layered with gold podiums, a red carpet, and white walls with rainbow-stained windows.

"H-Huh?" Tanjirou muttered, looking down at himself. He was still wearing the same clothes as before—his green and black checkered patterned haori, his white shirt, and white Hakama pants and black zori—the only difference was that he didn't have a gaping hole in his chest.

The gaping hole caused by Dream.

"Where… am I?" Tanjirou questioned. A haze surrounded his mind as he clutched his forehead. He shakily rose from the spot he found himself in, his breath rigid. He didn't know what was going on. He should be with his family. Not… wherever this place was.

"Well, isn't this a unique turn of events?" A voice boomed from behind the redhead, Tanjirou turned around faster than he ever had before, and as soon as he did, he was met with someone that he didn't think possible to see again, even in death.

It was Dream. Except he looked different, sort of. Instead of that strange thing he saw him wear before, he wore a sleeveless white robe of sorts, exposing the top left side of his chest and his well-built arms and legs. On his back were two pairs of wings, folding into themselves, and around his neck was a mask on a golden chain, except this mask had the English letters X and D side by side. His hair was a dark brown, and his eyes were rainbow in colour.

He sat on a throne made of gold, his hand on his chin, his whole body leaned forward as if he were staring at an ant, intrigue dancing around in his rainbow eyes. Another thing that was strange about him was that he was tall—unusually tall. He was the same size as the house that Dream built.

Tanjirou stepped back, nearly stumbling over his feet had it not been for the fact that he landed in a chair that randomly manifested behind him. "I wasn't expecting this. I knew something was going to happen, but not this," the person who looked identical to Dream reclined back on his throne, putting his arms on the armrests.

The reddish-black-haired boy couldn't take his eyes off of the giant human in front of him. However, once he got past the shock, his anger took over swiftly. "You… you bastard!" Tanjirou shouted, attempting to get up from the chair, only to realize he couldn't. "LET ME GO, DREAM! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

"My, my! It seems like this one's eager! I like it!" The massive Dream said, smirking. The giant crossed his arms, sighing with a disappointed tone. "Though it seems you have me confused for my son. Not that I can help it, he is extremely similar to me, is he not?" the man said, standing up from his throne as he shrunk down to normal size. Rather than being the size of a building, while still being tall at the height of 6'10, he wasn't nearly as tall as he was before.

Tanjirou's eyes widened, calming down, though not nearly as much as he truly should've. "Y-Your son?" Tanjirou muttered, the man laughing. He placed a hand on the boy, the chair disappearing, allowing for Tanjirou to stand up. The man let go of the boy's shoulder, putting both arms behind his back, his wings flexing inward and outward before settling calmly behind him.

"Yes! That would be correct! Dream, or his birth name, Clay Davis, is my son. My name is Xander Davis, or, you can call me…. Hmm, how do I put this? God? But just for you, Xander should be fine enough," Xander said, smiling.

Tanjirou was more confused than he had been mere moments ago, blinking several times as he tried to rationalize what it was Xander had just said. There was no way that was true. If that had been the case then… no. He simply refused to believe it. Yet, standing in front of him now, he couldn't help but question if he wasn't far off from the truth. "G… God? As in the person who sorts people out in the sky above?" Tanjirou muttered, looking up at Xander, who simply nodded.

"That would be correct, young man," Xander began, walking past Tanjirou. "Come, walk and talk with me. I have things I want to discuss with you," Xander said, motioning for Tanjirou to follow him. Reluctantly, the teen did as asked and walked alongside Xander. There was a minute of silence between the two, all the while Tanjirou soaked everything in.

He and his family weren't deeply religious. But they did believe in reincarnation. To have his whole worldview shattered like this… it was jarring. He didn't pay attention to western religions. He saw them as utter nonsense, mostly thanks to his father. And that was when a thought cropped up in his head. "W-wait a minute…. Is my family here?" Tanjirou asked, looking over to Xander, who frowned.

"Ah… that, I should probably mention that," Xander began. "Your family has already reincarnated," Xander continued, catching Tanjirou off guard.

"W-Wha—"

"Now, I know that might come as jarring to you," Xander quickly cut him off, one of his rainbow eyes glancing over to Tanjirou, taking in the boy's confused, angered, and yet also sad expression. "However, due to… how you died, I cannot let you move on. Not yet," the god continued, letting out a sigh.

"Why?!" Tanjirou shouted indignantly, Xander putting a finger to his lips, shushing him without saying anything. When he went to talk again, the boy found it to be impossible, making the boy's eyes widen. He tried opening his mouth, but he found that he couldn't do that either.

"Now. Normally, whenever Dream kills someone, they resurrect in their current bodies and are given two more chances at life. Hell, that happens with everyone whom I am the god of. You see. I'm not the overarching God of everyone. I am the God of the Dream Isles, a land that has been, by all accounts, separated from basic reality. Think of it as a kind of… heaven. The difference between Heaven and the Dream Isles is that I created it so that my son, Clay, could heal from a grievous wound he suffered during a… war that I will not get into," Xander explained, stopping and fully turning to Tanjirou, who also stopped and looked in his direction.

"You see. I'm willing to give you another chance at life. To have your body brought back to reality. You were destined for greatness—I can see it in your soul. However, in order for you to do that, you have to heal. Dream's sword is tied to destroying the soul, and by the looks of things, it is shattered, hardly keeping itself together. The Dream Isles is designed to heal the soul. So, that is where you will be for the foreseeable future. I don't know for how long. It could take months, years even. But by the end of it, the end result of yourself will be transported back to your reality. You will be given three lives, just like everyone else there. If you die there, three times, you will not be getting another chance, and you WILL be forced to pass on," Xander stated, a stern expression dressing his face.

Tanjirou didn't know what to think. On one hand, he wanted to join his family in the afterlife. On the other hand, he would get the chance to save his sister. If he could do that, then he would do so in a heartbeat. Xander snapped his fingers, breaking the invisible lock on Tanjirou's mouth.

"I'll do it!" Tanjirou stated, Xander, smirking. He raised his hand to Tanjirou's face. He sucked in a deep breath, then, he sighed, his eyes and hand glowing a deep white as he spoke. "Memini te, sed tu non meministi me. Tres casus, ego dabo tibi. Non deficiet eis. Ite nunc, et da gloriam nomini tuo!"

The white light that came from Xander's hand and eyes enveloped Tanjirou. Not even a moment after, it shot up through the roof without any damage being done. In the place of Tanjirou Kamado, was nothing. Xander smirked, looking back to his throne. As he walked back to it, he put his hands behind his back, looking down at the ground.

"I'm so, so sorry, Puffy. I do not know why our Son keeps doing things like this. If only he still had his heart, maybe then… he would be able to understand what it is he has done is wrong. But until that day, I will have to keep pushing him. One day, our Clay will return to us. That I promise you," Xander said, enlarging himself as he sat atop his throne.

He just hoped Tanjirou would be the one to show him. Either that or Clay will die without learning his lesson.

xxXXxxXXxx

"Tan… jee…row Cam…a…doe?" Niki questioned, tilting her head to the left, tasting the name on her tongue. "Uh… is that how you pronounce it?" Niki said, looking at him with a curious gaze as the boy in question nodded, a small smile on his face.

"Yup!" Tanjirou said, looking over to Philza, then frowning. "Uh… why do you have wings?" The boy asked rather bluntly, causing the crow father to burst out in laughter, confusing the boy. "W-Wha—was it something I said?" The boy asked, raising an eyebrow as the man shook his head, calming himself down.

"N-no… oh god, that was funny! Ah, but, um… yeah, I was born like this. That's just how I came into the world. Er, but I gotta ask, what brings you to the tundra?" Philza asked, glancing at the window. Snow was coming down in droves, the winged man chuckling with a bit of worry. "You're lucky you came across us when you did, otherwise you'd be stuck out in the blizzard," the winged man said, pointing to the window, to which Tanjirou paled.

"A-Ah… I see…." The boy said, a frown taking his visage. "To… answer your question, though. All I can remember is…" Tanjirou began, gripping his forehead, his frown deepening. "I was killed. Stabbed through the chest by a guy named Dream. I… he was planning on wiping out an entire village using my youngest sister, who became a Demon, and… and… he killed me for trying to stop him. I—"

"Stop," Philza started, his eyes wide. For that moment, Philza lost himself. Lost in a flurry of rage and distress. The boy knew Dream. This was his chance. His chance to find Techno, to find Wilbur—Ranboo, Tommy! He needed to know, and he needed to know now.

"Did you just say "Dream?!" Because I think you did," Philza said, looking over at Niki, her eyes just as wide. "What did he look like, tell me, now!" Philza said, grabbing the collar of Tanjirou's Haori, making the boy panic. Without thinking, he headbutted the birdman, making him stagger, holding his head with a stunned expression.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Tanjirou shouted, staring at Philza, looking at Niki, who stepped back. The boy's breathing was erratic as he stumbled back toward the bed. In response to being headbutted, Philza let out a slow, shaky breath, reigning in his anger as growls came from the bottom of the ladder. The dogs knew what happened almost instantly, but he dared not let them up, as they would tear themselves up that ladder to rip out the boy's throat.

Philza looked at Tanjirou with an apologetic look in his eyes. At that moment, he knew—gods he knew that look, and he hated it. He had seen it time and time again. It made his heart ache when he saw it. It reminded him of the faces he had burned into his memory. The faces of the innocent. The faces of the dead.

To put it simply; he was startled. Terrified. A look he had been used to seeing, but in eyes far younger. He couldn't help but see a much younger, much more scared version of Tommy before him. At that moment, he truly understood the reasoning behind his action.

"I didn't mean to startle you, Tanjirou," Philza began, his tone of voice calm, fatherly almost. He only used this tone when he spoke to a far younger Wilbur, and a far younger Tommy. It had been years since he used this voice. But he could tell it was working—the relaxing shoulders of Tanjirou being evident that it had been, at the very least, been enough to subdue him.

Philza, for his part, let in a bated breath. He needed to get the boy to speak about what this "Dream" person looked like. Philza knew exactly what Dream looked like. It was hard not to remember that blasted mask. But, in any case, he needed to make sure it was truly Dream—no, Clay. He needed to know if it really was Clay, or just someone using the moniker of Dream.

"I really need you to tell me what this Dream person looks like. If he is who I think he is, then I need to contact the entire isles and speak to them, and you're going to need to talk to them about what you saw, where he is, and how to get to there," Philza said, causing Tanjirou to take in a deep breath, calming his nerves.

Philza knew he was asking a lot from the teen. But it had to be done. If the isles could get Dream locked back up into that prison, and so he could run away further into the wilderness with the Syndicate, Technoblade, and Ranboo, then he'd do it in a heartbeat. And this boy was the key to all of his plights. At least, for the moment.

Tanjirou looked uneasy. He fidgeted. The fearful look danced in his eyes, unsure of what to say. Niki looked at the reddish-black-haired boy and smiled an infectious smile. "It's okay, Tanjirou. Take your time. There's no rush," Niki said, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, one that he quickly shrugged off, but gave an appreciative look after the fact.

"I…" the boy paused, sitting back down on the bed and looking at the floor. "I can't… really describe what he looks like. He… he had a mask. A mask with a smile and two dots on it. He wore this strange… thing over his body with pockets by his waist. Black pants of some kind, and black shoes…. Does that match the person who you're thinking about?" Tanjirou asked as Philza looked over to Niki, who had her hand over her mouth, a look of shock in her eyes.

There was no mistaking it. That was Dream. Silence befell the room almost immediately, Philza's thoughts running a mile a minute, piecing things together in his mind. No matter where Dream went, death followed suit. It was just facts. No one escaped his clutches unless he grew bored. No matter what happened, no matter where he went. Dream would find a way to cause chaos.

If he had killed the boy—someone who, by all accounts, looked nothing like anyone else here, and had a haze of confusion about him, then that must have meant that there was a group of people who had settled somewhere and were being attacked ruthlessly by Dream.

At least, that was what he thought. He reigned in his nonsense and focused on the bigger picture. Dream wouldn't go somewhere he didn't already know about. That much was for certain. Dream was smart—scarily smart. There had to have been a reason why the devil in green would kill someone seemingly so random.

Perhaps a message? But a message for who? Better yet, why was it someone so… random like Tanjirou. Someone who, by all accounts, shared no ties to anyone here. Was it just because he was bored?

"And… where were you when he killed you? L'manburg? Las Nevadas? Snowchester? Logstedshire? The Badlands?" Philza asked, listing off locations like the back of his hand, looking at Tanjirou with a sense of urgency in his eyes; all the while Tanjirou simply stared with an array of confusion.

"Where… are those? Somewhere in North America? I've never heard of those places…." Tanjirou questioned, causing Philza's eyes to widen even further. Of course, how didn't he NOT think of that? He put a hand over his mouth, covering his shock and surprise. The wingman looked away, his sense of urgency skyrocketing faster than it ever had before.

It all started to click.

It made sense. He now understood why it was that Tanjirou was a random killing. Why no one had seen Dream even in passing. Why not even George or Sapnap had been able to find him—two people who always knew where Dream was, seeing as they were, in the past, thick as thieves.

It was because he wasn't in the Dream Isles. It was because he wasn't in the Nether. Hell, he wasn't even in The End—even if he somehow got past the barrier that prevented anyone from going there, he couldn't have been there, because he wasn't even in this dimension.

And that could only mean one thing.

He quickly looked back at Tanjirou, removing the hand from his mouth, his expression hardening into one of seriousness so fierce that it made Niki flinch. He sucked in a deep breath, then spoke.

"You're not from this dimension, are you?" Philza said, Tanjirou looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Niki looked at Tanjirou, then back at Philza, back to Tanjirou, then back to Philza again.

"What are you—"

"Shut up, Niki," Philza interrupted, glancing at the aforementioned woman, making the pinkette flinch as he looked back over to Tanjirou. "When Dream killed you, where were you when it happened," The crow father asked, narrowing his eyes as Tanjirou fidgeted in place, rubbing his right arm with a look of apprehension. "Tanjirou… I know you don't want to remember what happened. I can tell that it's making you uncomfortable, but we need to know. You mentioned some place called North America. You're from a different dimension, that much is clear, mostly because "North America" doesn't exist here. So tell me, where were you when—"

"Japan… Kumotori mountain… in a mansion that he built for us to survive the incoming blizzard, much like the one that's happening now. He… he killed me in the foyer…." Tanjirou said, placing a hand on the spot where he had been stabbed—the heart. Philza let out a long, drawn-out sigh, the brim of his hat now covering his eyes, a deep, ugly frown on his face.

Japan. He knew where that was. He sent one of his crows there. Being a wingman and a Demi-God gave him access to other dimensions far past the Nether and The End. Though he could only send 1 crow to any given dimension, and while reconnecting with them was a pain in the ass, he knew full well what had happened.

Someone sent them to another dimension. It couldn't have been Dream, he's not that powerful. Nor could it have been Technoblade or Ranboo. Tommy, as much as he loved the kid as a son, was dumber than bricks when it came to magic and potions. So, it could only have been one person. One person was responsible for all this mess.

"Niki. Get into contact with Puffy. Once this blizzard is over, we need to head to her asap. She's the only way we can solve this," Philza said, earning a raised eyebrow from Niki.

"But why? I mean, I'm not against seeing my fiancé, but why is it so important? How can she bring back the others?" Niki questioned, Philza's unwavering look landing on Niki.

"Because she's the only one who can really communicate with who we need to speak to. We need to contact her lost lover."

xxXXxxXXxx

Hanako sat atop the rooftop of the Mansion, flexing her fingers in and out of her palm. The rays of the sun hit her, and they hit her hard. Yet, it did nothing to phase her in the slightest. Beside her was Takeo, snoring softly, her other hand gently caressing his cheek, a small smile on her face as she gazed at her older brother.

It was rare that she got to spend time with Takeo, what with Wilbur constantly training her, especially after his promotion to Upper Moon Three after Akaza's apparent betrayal of Muzan. She had asked her teacher for a break, and she was granted it. This meant she could spend time with her brother, who had stayed up all night with her to watch the stars and talk about the future.

The future. A prospect she hadn't imagined to be possible. Not since the attack at her house. Her memory of that event was foggy at best, and completely missing at worse—like something was actively preventing her from remembering.

Her mother. Her brothers. Her sisters. Torn apart. Devoured. All by a blur that couldn't even be registered in her mind. Her nose flared, smoke coming out of it like the dragons of folklore. It had to have been a Demon that killed her family. There was no doubt about it. Just who that Demon was, however, was a completely different story.

"Brooding all up here by yourself, Six-san?" A calm, almost apathetic voice spoke out to her. Hanako didn't need to turn her head to know full well who it was. Not that she cared all too much about their presence, but it still confused her why they were here in the first place.

"Yeah… I am. Just, thinking about things," Hanako began, looking over to Takeo, before letting out a deep sigh that she had been holding in. "What are you doing here, Rui-kun? I thought you went back to Mount Nagatomo with your Spider Family to check up on them?"

The titular white-haired, spider-like Demon sat beside Hanako. There was a blank, vacant look on his face as he brushed the hair out of his eyes. His white kimono sat gracefully against his body, the web motifs fitting him and his Blood Demon Art perfectly; no doubt an intentional design made by the boy. "Already did that. They seem to be doing alright," Rui stated, gripping the edge of the roof as he stared up at the sun.

"I never thought I'd be able to see it again like this. You know? Being able to see the sun once more makes me feel… different. 100 years of being stuck in the dark… I missed the glorious rays of the sun, yet even when I was told I could see it, I feared it. I didn't believe Technoblade at first, but when I didn't combust the moment I stepped outside, I felt relief. But now, as I stare up at the sun, I feel something else. Now that I can see the light, I feel free. I feel like a human again."

Rui paused, looking down at the floor below. Grass was starting to poke out from the remaining snow on the ground. It was now close to summer, and the snow that had been protected by the trees was now beginning to melt away—not that the Spring hadn't helped with it, but now the final bits of frost were finally going away.

For some reason, Rui felt sad to see the snow go. But, just because he felt sad that it was leaving, didn't mean he wasn't about to embrace the change. "I've been thinking about some things, Six-san. Things that might seem unimportant to you, but, I want to share my thoughts with you regardless."

The Spider Demon's vibrant blue eyes glanced over at Hanako, then to Takeo. For a split second, Jealousy made itself known, before Rui quickly squashed it down without a second thought. Hanako only raised an eyebrow at the Demon's cryptic words, which prompted him to continue.

"Life is precious. Something I'm sure you can agree with. But as Demons, we grow stronger by snuffing that life out. What if we shifted focus. Why don't we only target the scum of the world, rather than innocence? We still get to feast on flesh, but we lessen the amount of cruelty that is in the world in the process. I brought it up with Technoblade, but he seemed to dismiss it. So, I wanted to ask you. Do you think it's a good idea?" Rui asked, glancing at Hanako, who had a perplexed look on her face.

In truth, she was a bit annoyed that she hadn't thought of that sooner. It was a good idea. If criminals were the only people disappearing, not many families would be impacted. Sure, some would be, but at the very least the victims wouldn't be innocent. Criminals were criminals. At the very least they deserved what was coming to them.

She looked over to Takeo, then smiled. "Yeah. That does sound like a good idea, Rui-kun," Hanako said, picking up her asleep brother, before turning to the Spider Demon. "But, I have to ask. Why talk to me about it? Why not Mukago-san, or even Wakuraba-sama?" The youngest, alive, Kamado questioned. Rui scoffed, dismissing the idea completely.

"Because Muka-chan, for all her brains, is more bloodthirsty than a bear after hibernation; and Wakuraba doesn't like me too much. Something about how flippant I am around Technoblade, or, Muzan in the past," Rui stated, sighing with discontent.

"I hate to interrupt what you two have here," a new voice spoke out—one that the two knew and immediately turned to—as a tall shadow loomed over them. "But I have a mission for you two," Technoblade spoke, crossing his arms. Out of instinct, the two Lower Moons bowed, earning an eye roll from Technoblade. "Don't need to bow just because I spoke, you two. Rise," Technoblade stated as the two did as they were told.

The pigman took Takeo from Hanako and held him bridal style, his eyes softening once he saw the asleep child. For a split second, he forgot about Hanako and Rui but quickly shook his head, getting his head back into the game.

"I'm going to put this one to bed. I need you two deployed immediately. I heard some news from Rokuro that there is a Hashira in the area, and they're close by. I can't have them finding this base. Due to your immunity to the sun, their Nichiren blades will be nothing to you. Decapitation doesn't affect you anymore. Don't kill them, simply send a message. After that, I want you two to go to Tokyo and meet up with the people who sent us this letter," Technoblade stated, passing Rui the letter.

The letter in question was sealed and addressed to "The Demons" as a collective. Not to anyone in particular, but just "The Demons." It was written in a purplish-coloured ink, and the letter itself was made of black paper.

"I've already read the contents. They want to talk to high-ranking officials in "The Demon Army." Since Muzan is undoubtedly unwilling to send any of his Upper Moons. I'll be sending you two. I would send Enmu and Rokuro. But Rokuro is currently recovering from a fight with the aforementioned Hashira, and Enmu is off in Nagasaki working on a mission to cement my presence in the Demon World. I trust you can get this done, yes?"

As soon as Technoblade asked that, the two Lower Moons nodded. A wave of determination flowed through the two. For Rui, he could finally stretch his legs and work his webs to deal with a pesky Hashira. For Hanako, it was to prove her worth to Technoblade. The pigman smiled—a genuine smile—then hummed in approval.

"Good. Then your mission starts now," the Blood God stated, the two Lower Moons leaving immediately after the command was given, Rui using his webs as a slide while Hanako simply jumped down from the roof and took off sprinting. When they left, Technoblade dropped the smile, looking down at Takeo.

He felt bad for the boy. Takeo wanted so badly to do something to help, but he couldn't bring himself to give the boy a job in the newly formed Syndicate Version 2—the name was still in the works, give him a break. He already put mounting pressure on Nezuko, and in virtue of being a Demon, Hanako felt like she HAD to do something.

Takeo didn't need to do anything. And as far as Technoblade was concerned, it would stay that way. He stared off into the forest, a neutral expression taking over his visage. In the back of his mind, he told himself that taking out the Demon Slayer Corp was needed. That getting rid of them was something he HAD to do. After all, the employed child soldiers.

Yet, making those child soldiers fight his now unkillable Demons. It felt wrong. Maybe, he was looking at it in the wrong way. Sure, having kids fight these monsters was deplorable. But, who was the real threat? Was it The Demon Slayers, or was it The Demons themselves? He now had control over The Lower Moons. Wilbur was an Upper Moon, and Kokushibo, well, perhaps he could be convinced that joining up with him would be far more beneficial in the long run.

Then, his thoughts trailed over to Muzan. At the mere thought of the bastard, he wanted to crush that pathetic welp of a "king" faster than he did Sam back in the prison. He was still furious over what he had tried to do to Nezuko, and now, he was beginning to question the man's loyalties.

It was true that he and Muzan shared a goal of destroying The Demon Slayer Corp, but with what he recently did now in the back of his mind, he was beginning to wonder what it was that Muzan was partnered with him for.

Was it because they truly did share a goal? Or perhaps, Muzan simply wanted to control him.

He had some thinking to do.

-To Be Continued in: In Blood We Trust - Part 1 -